Koreatown, Los Angeles

Koreatown is a neighborhood in Central Los Angeles, California. In the early 1900s, Korean immigrants began making their way to California, where they created communities based around ethnic churches. As the Korean population reached hundreds, their residential and commercial activities spread to the southwestern corner of the Los Angeles business district, and the Koreans established churches, restaurants, and community organizations, as well as vegetable and fruit distribution businesses. As the entertainment industry grew in Koreatown, Koreans remained segregated into low-income districts because of discriminatory housing policies. This policy was reversed in 1948, but the neighborhood began to enter a steep economic decline in the late 1960s. The once-glamorous mid-Wilshire Boulevard area was filled with vacant commercial and office space, attracting wealthier South Korean immigrants. They found inexpensive housing and opened many businesses in Koreatown, and the Immigration and Nationality Act of 1965 removed restrictions on Asian immigration, helping to further the growth of Koreatown. In 1982, the first Koreatown sign was installed as the Korean culture boomed. In the aftermath of the Los Angeles Riots of 1992, the Koreans were politically divided among liberals (who sought to unite with other minorities to fight against racial oppression and scapegoating) and conservatives (who emphasized law and order, supported the economic and social policies of the Republican Party, and emphasized the differences between Koreans and other minorities). During the 21st century, Koreatown became a commercially driven area, but it still faced problems such as poverty and gentrification. Koreatown had a Hispanic majority, leading to Korean cashiers speaking Spanish and Mexican cashiers speaking Korean to customers, as well as to Korean-inspired taco trucks. In 2008, Koreatown had a population of 124,281 people.